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The Alternative Library

The Stephanie Nolasco Interview

Author of "Ghost"

Just in time for the Fall 2006 issue, JJ and I met online with Stephanie Nolasco, author of the poem "Ghost." This is the first time we have interviewed the author of a poetry submission, and it was definitely a refreshing change of pace. Stephanie is a New York City resident, student, and prolific "creative non-fiction" writer and journalist. We discussed a broad range of topics from Stephanie's religious background to the real life supernatural phenomena that led to the writing of "Ghost." Time allowing and authors willing, JJ and I will continue to publish a new author interview in each issue of the Midnight Times. Enjoy! -- Jay Manning, MT Editor

THE INTERVIEW

JJ Collins: Today we are interviewing the famous Stephanie Nolasco. What we would like to do is start off by getting a little background info on you Stephanie. First, what do you prefer to be called?

Stephanie Nolasco: Steph is fine by me.

JJ: Please share a little about yourself to your reading audience, such as where you live and what you do professionally.

Stephanie: I'm a junior attending Eugene Lang College in the East Village, concentrating on non-fiction writing and journalism. I currently reside in the neighborhood where I was born and raised, which is Washington Heights, the nosebleed section of New York City. When I'm not playing the role of student, I take up various writing projects.

JJ: What types of writing do you enjoy doing most?

Stephanie: Non-fiction writing, whether it is journalism style or memoir.

JJ: Why does non-fiction interest you?

Stephanie: Non-fiction allows you to explore the truth, whatever the truth means to you.

JJ: When did you realize that writing was what you really wanted to do?

Stephanie: I knew I wanted to write all of my life. When I was a little girl, I would write stories and cut photographs from magazines. I would make my own "books," read them to relatives and sell them to neighbors. I filled notebooks with random writings, and I was certain that one day they would be bestsellers. If that doesn't tell you that I had the drive in me to be a writer, then I wasted twenty years of my life on this craft.

JJ: How old were you when you wrote your first story?

Stephanie: Five years old. I sold it to a neighbor for 50 cents.

JJ: That's awesome. What percentage of your writing is fiction?

Stephanie: I don't really write a lot of fiction and even when I do, it's often based on real life events, whether occurring in my life or in the news. That falls under the new popular genre "creative non-fiction."

JJ: I saw some of the publishing credits on your web site. You've done a lot. Which of those publications are you most proud?

Stephanie: I'm proud of every published piece. It's a boost to my drive to write. However, I would say "An Army of Barbies." It's been published various times, and I still receive letters from readers on it.

JJ: Tell us a little about that piece. A brief overview.

Stephanie: It was a commentary on the Miss Universe competition in which Amelia Vega, a Dominican, won. Rather than being proud for my people, I explained how this isn't an accomplishment worth celebrating.

JJ: Something else I noticed about your publishing credits is that the topics are very diverse. Give us a bit more insight into your personal and cultural background.

Stephanie: Oh yes, I feel that you're not fully a writer unless you explore and go beyond boundaries.

JJ: Definitely. Where is Stephanie from and what are the things that shaped her as a journalistic writer?

Stephanie: Well, I was born in New York City, but I come from a very diverse family of Dominicans and Italians. I even discovered a few weeks ago that my great-grandmother was a Puerto Rican who died at age 17. I always learn something new from my family, it seems.

JJ: What are some of the cultural influences that you value from your diverse relatives?

Stephanie: I feel religion has played a very vital role in the kind of person I have become. Also, I wouldn't have as much interest in exploring and going beyond boundaries if I didn't do that with my own heritage.

JJ: How has religion shaped you, and do you mean Catholicism in particular?

Stephanie: My family, from both sides, are hard-core Roman Catholics. My grandmother was a Santera priestess who converted to Christianity. I came out of the "Broom Closet" as a Wiccan during my junior year of high school.

JJ: Are you a practicing Wiccan now?

Stephanie: Yes.

JJ: Do you feel that conflicts or supplements your Roman Catholic background?

Stephanie: I love reading on saints and visiting churches, but the Roman Catholic faith is not part of my belief. My family can't stand that, and we have had many battles since then.

JJ: Have you written pieces that address those belief conflicts between you and your family?

Stephanie: Yes. I actually wrote a piece that was published in New Witch magazine, which talks about coming out of the "broom closet."

JJ: What's the title of the piece?

Stephanie: "A Pagan's Journey," which was also published in Lipstick Mystic.

JJ: If there were two main things you'd like people to know about Wiccans and their believes, what would it be? Such as something people either misinterpret or are ignorant of in general.

Stephanie: I must stress that we don't believe in nor acknowledge "Satan" into our beliefs, and we are humans who love and respect as anyone else.

Jay Manning: Isn't nature a large part of the basis for Wicca beliefs?

Stephanie: Oh yes, I am a lover of the goddess who is Mother Nature.

JJ: What's a second point you'd like to make known about the Wiccan faith?

Stephanie: As we love and respect others, we ask for the same. If you're unfamiliar about Wicca, don't make assumptions. Ask and learn, as we do with all things.

JJ: How did you become a Wiccan?

Stephanie: Personally, when I felt that Wicca was the right path for me, I heavily meditated and accepted the lord and lady as the universal force who aids me in my journey of life, just as someone who accepts Jesus as their personal savior would do in the privacy of their homes or the silent openness of a church.

JJ: Why is it that people often associate the term "witch" with Wiccan? Are Wiccans witches?

Stephanie: Many Wiccans consider themselves to be witches, but some feel it's degrading because there are so many negative connotations attached to the term "witch." Personally, I feel it's empowering.

JJ: How do you define the term "witch"?

Stephanie: A "witch" is a person with power, a person with control within themselves, and is one with the universe, not against it.

JJ: What's an example of being against the universe?

Stephanie: War for certain. War doesn't just affect the two parties fighting. It affects a nation. It affects the world. Lives are forever changed in a negative way due to war. Being one with the universe is advocating for peace and justice, not killing and suffering. After all, we never remember who starts the war, only who wins.

JJ: That's a great point. You've indicated an affinity for non-fiction and the truth.

Jay: I think people who don't understand the Wiccan religion tend to associate witches with the stereotypes we are all familiar with. Stereotypes that are usually promoted by television or movies.

Stephanie: There are many, many stereotypes on television in particular that promote Wiccans in ways we are not. I feel that someone who actually wants to know what Wicca is should read books on the subject, not watch television shows like Charmed. Shows like Charmed are meant to be entertainment, not a means of education.

JJ: How do you feel about entertainment in general? Are there movies and fictional books that you like?

Stephanie: Oh I think entertainment is wonderful. It's a great way to escape from the nine to five world or just outside stress in general. I adore Sex and the City and Golden Girls. Blanche is my TV idol and Sophia is the grandmother I wish I had!

JJ: Golden Girls is HILARIOUS! Blanche is awesome. You can be older and still be sexy. Sophia is a trip. I still crack up watching those reruns. I remember someone making the point that it takes someone really smart to play dumb well. Betty White is a very intelligent person. It was such a great ensemble cast.

Stephanie: We need more women like Blanche in the world. Sophia makes me cry from laughing. I could never get enough of that series. Betty White was a huge trip. Even thinking about her character makes me laugh now. It takes excellent acting skills to completely be someone that you're not in real life.

JJ: So Steph, who are some of your favorite authors, either fiction or non-fiction? Tell us about authors you admire or enjoy reading.

Stephanie: I love the confessional writers of Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton. I also like Anne Rice, The Bronte sisters and Joyce Carol Oates, to name a few. To include some men in the mix, I like Shakespeare and George Orwell.

JJ: What is the last book that you read that you really enjoyed or would recommend to other readers?

Stephanie: Plath and Oates are authors I've read and really enjoyed. I just finished reading Such, Such Were the Joys by Orwell. If you've had a difficult childhood during school, Orwell will speak directly to you.

JJ: Then I need to read Such, such Were the Joys.

Jay: Did you relate to Orwell's book?

Stephanie: Yes. The idea of despising an aspect of your childhood is something every reader can relate to. A writer who can relate to any reader is indeed brilliant.

Jay: Good point. Is there anything specific you would like to share in that regard?

Stephanie: Not really.

JJ: Let's talk about your poem.

Stephanie: Ah yes, "Ghost."

JJ: First tell us about the inspiration for it.

Stephanie: The inspiration is what makes the meaning behind the poem complicated.

JJ: Please break it down for us.

Stephanie: You see, I live in an Victorian apartment in which a young girl had committed suicide during the 1910s. Growing up, I had experienced so many odd and strange things that we even had a priest come to bless the house. Since then, I have felt more at peace. However, those strange aspects became a poem and thus, a closing chapter to that time.

Jay: It has a very intimate feel to it. The content of the poem was obviously a good fit for Midnight Times, so of course we are interested in the personal side of it.

JJ: What are some of the strange things you experienced?

Stephanie: Often things would turn on and off on their own, plates and glass cups would randomly shatter. Every Friday evening, I had these horrible nightmares and my room would have this strange aroma of decaying roses. It was difficult because who would believe such a story?

JJ: Was there a final straw that made you seek out the priest?

Stephanie: I begged my mother for us to move, but she felt that god would find a way. I just couldn't take it anymore. Every Friday night was horrific. I couldn't sleep, I felt the bed shake, and the cold spots were frightening.

JJ: That totally explains the feeling of finality in the last lines of your poem. But even though it feels more peaceful, do you feel the presence is still there?

Stephanie: It turned out that the young girl, who often kept roses throughout the apartment, died on a Friday night. However, why we didn't feel her presence until many years later is a mystery I hope to never find the answer to. I feel that the presence is gone, but I hate sleeping in the room with a closed door.

Jay: When did you write the poem?

Stephanie: I wrote various lines to the poem at age 11, but hid it forever within various notebooks. I decided to look back recently at many past poems I composed and reflect on them, and "Ghost" was one of those poems.

JJ: And you still live in that apartment?

Stephanie: Yes I do.

Jay: The ending seems to imply a release. Does it reflect an actual release of your own experiences with that?

Stephanie: Oh yes, I feel that there's a release from the stress in experiencing those strange elements and a release for the presence of a restless soul.

Jay: Did completing the poem help, or had the departure already taken place prior to that?

Stephanie: When I had composed the poem, I no longer had those experiences. However, it was my written proof that I can seek peace within the same environment.

Jay: That's what I was wondering. That's an incredible experience.

Stephanie: Personally, I wished it was just a bad movie rather than an actual experience.

JJ: I was thinking more "horrifying." I remember being afraid to close the door in my great grandmother's old scary house. That sucked. I like how even in your poetry, you're still speaking and sharing your own truths. Originally, I just thought it was a fictional piece. I definitely get the poem more so now, after your explanation.

Jay: I could see there was more to it than what was obvious on the surface, which is why I selected it for publication. The poem seems to be a combination of several aspects of your being: the haunting spirit inhabiting your space, your religious ideals, and being a writer. It's very powerful on every level.

Stephanie: The experience was powerful in itself. I was told as a child by a priestess that I would one day be a witch and that I would have the power to communicate with spirits. Perhaps I became some sort of element for the presence in finding peace, which was the end result. It's a part of my life I don't often discuss because so many people are skeptical that it actually happened, and I didn't want to spend my time proving to them it was real. You just had to be there and witness it.

Jay: All of our previous interviews have been with authors primarily interested in writing fiction. I thought this would be an interesting change of pace, and my judgment has proven to be well founded. You certainly have provided us with a tremendous amount of insight into being a writer, not just in the area of fiction or non-fiction, but beyond that--turning life experiences into writing.

JJ: I actually didn't realize this would be so different until after we were midway into the interview. You are one of those people who have actually lived through what many of our writers create as fiction.

Stephanie: I'm glad to be a part of this. Our lives are stories and we are the composers.

JJ: We're glad to give you a voice to express it. Are there any other projects you're working on that you'd like to mention?

Stephanie: I have been given various writing offers, but I don't speak of them until they actually happen. It then loses the magic of it. However, people can always visit my web site at www.angelfire.com/freak2/snolasco, as I update it on a monthly basis along with my friend David "dk."

JJ: Are there any last words you'd like to share with readers of your poem?

Stephanie: Don't be afraid to believe.

JJ: Apropos indeed.

Jay: Words to live by.

JJ: And on that note, we'll conclude. Thank you for your time, Steph. You're a great writer, and so prolific. We enjoyed meeting you.

Jay: Yes! Thank you, Stephanie!

Stephanie: Thank you so much. It was a great pleasure.

Jay: It was our pleasure, indeed.